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Indoor track: Meet of Champions preview

gtrk Olivia Baker.JPG

Columbia junior Olivia Baker is aiming to become the third girl in meet history to win three straight 400-meter titles at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions on Saturday at the Bennett Center in Toms River.
(Photo by Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger)

Olivia Baker of Columbia will attempt to make history, the deepest boys pole vault competition in meet history will battle over the bar, and Haisha Bisiolu of Union and Braheme Days Jr. of Bridgeton will defend their titles at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions today at the Bennett Center in Toms River.

The boys meet starts at 10 a.m. The girls pole vault will begin at 11 a.m. with the remainder of the girls events scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

Baker, a junior, is favored to become just the third girl in meet history to win three straight 400-meter titles, and will be chasing the meet record of 55.19 set in 2008 by Nijgia Snapp of Oakcrest. Baker, who has never lost a 400 to a New Jersey athlete, has run 55.02 this season, the top time in the nation this season.

But that’s not all.

Baker’s also scheduled to anchor Columbia’s 4x400 team, which is No. 2 in the nation this season and No. 2 in state history with a 3:47.51. Columbia has a great shot at breaking the meet record of 3:53.50 that it set in 2010.

There will be quite a buzz at the boys pole vault, which features four athletes who have cleared 15-0 or better this season, the first time in state indoor history that has happened.

Leading the way will be defending champion Craig Hunter of Robbinsville, the state leader a 16-0. He’ll be challenged by Nick Eckett of Jackson Liberty, who has made 15-4, and 15-0 vaulters Jordan Pacheco of Morris Hills and Peter Fagan of Westfield. With this much talent in the field, the meet record of 15-6 set in 2008 by Dan Batdorf of West Deptford could fall.

There are only two other defending champions.

Bisiolu, a sophomore, will try to make it two straight in the girls 55 dash, and the UCLA-bound Days Jr. is a huge favorite to repeat in the boys shot put.

Bisiolu will have her hands full with Winslow’s Torie Robinson, who won the Group 3 dash in a state season best 7.05.

In the boys shot put, Days, the national indoor champion last year, leads the nation with this winter with a 69-0, so he has a chance to break the meet record of 69-5 ½ set in 2010 by the legendary Nick Vena of Morristown.

One of the other main attractions of the meet should be the boys 3,200 where five sub 9:20 runners and 13 sub-9:29 runners are expected to clash in a race that could go under the meet record of 8:58.83 set in 2010 by Jon Vitez of Haddonfield.

Junior Tom O’Neill of Middletown North is the favorite based on his 9:05.50 last month at the Monmouth County Championships, which is No. 5 in the nation this season. But there are several strong contenders that have emerged to challenge O’Neill.

Jimmy Daniels of Sterling ran a meet record 9:14.31 to win Group 2. Non-Public A winner Tom Rooney of CBA ran a meet record 9:15.76 to win the Non-Public A race. Kyle Levermore of Don Bosco Prep has run 9:17.90 for two miles this season. Fran Bogan of Christian Brothers has run 9:19.29, and Group 4 champion Dylan Tarpey of Freehold Township has gone 9:20.65.

There’s also Liam Mullett of Pingry, won the Non Public B race in 9:23.60, and Craig Corti of Wallkill Valley, the Group 1 champion, Jack Baisley of Holmdel, 2012 runner-up Matt Nelson of Barnegat, Steve Maine of Highland Regional, and Sam Habib of Old Bridge have all run under 9:29 this season.